The Washington Post
"As traditional reporting is increasingly being challenged by high-decibel, opinion-drenched media, Fager highlights storytelling that conveys a deep understanding of issues and demonstrates the power of television to inform."
Library Journal
11/01/2017
The longest-running, prime-time TV broadcast, 60 Minutes, begins its 50th season this fall. Many Americans tune in every Sunday night to learn about the world and to be entertained. This lavishly illustrated retrospective look at the show highlights some of the major stories and personalities that have made it such a success. Fager, the current executive producer, opens this book with the decade 1988–98, when he joined the company as a producer. He then goes back to the show's beginning in 1968 and continues through 2018. This insider perspective gives a behind-the-scenes view of how stories were developed, along with the complex interactions of the talented and competitive staff. There's Mike Wallace, known for his tough interviews and prone to stealing stories from colleagues, and Andy Rooney, who was suffering from dementia when he was tricked into retiring on-air and then didn't remember what he had done. Major politicians have been regular guests on the show, including Bill and Hillary Clinton and Nancy Reagan. VERDICT Longtime viewers of 60 Minutes will appreciate this volume's pictures, story recaps, and the inside scoop on show personalities.—Judy Solberg, Sacramento, CA
Kirkus Reviews
2017-09-03
Insider accounts of 60 Minutes, published in conjunction with the program's 50th anniversary (and counting), a milestone that makes it the longest airing show in the history of TV.A mixture of professional and personal gossip, as well as accounts of controversial episodes aired during the hour each Sunday evening (as well as other time slots during the early years), the book is mostly chronological, with one major exception. 60 Minutes executive producer and former CBS news chairman Fager begins with the third decade (1988-1998) because he believes that demonstrating the saga of the program after it reached maturity is the most effective way to help readers understand both the internal dynamics and the external impacts. Following the first section, the author travels back to the first decade and then settles into chronology with decades two, four, and five. Always at the center of the saga is founder Don Hewitt (1922-2009), portrayed as a benevolent newsroom dictator who mercilessly drove the show's producers and on-air correspondents. Almost every correspondent receives attention from Fager, who tells of journalistic and personal blemishes as well as successes. Mike Wallace is clearly the most dominant of the talent portrayed here, followed by Morley Safer, Harry Reasoner, Ed Bradley, Lesley Stahl, Steve Kroft, and Scott Pelley. To his credit, the author also offers detailed insights into many of the program's producers, who are rarely seen by viewers but generate most of the story ideas and conduct most of the reporting. Fager provides an up-to-date account, noting the rise of Donald Trump and the eight pre-presidential Trump episodes on 60 Minutes, including one about how he drove up rents to perhaps illegally evict tenants in his residential buildings. The author covers so many stories—about domestic politics, corporate wrongdoing, global wars, celebrity high jinks, adoring profiles, among dozens of others—that the book is best consumed a few pages per sitting. An illuminating TV show biography that will appeal most to fans, but no need to read it all at once.
